IRL: Indy Racing League News and Notes 2005-08-02

INDY RACING LEAGUE NEWS AND NOTES -- Aug. 2, 2005
Today's IRL headlines
1. Carpentier at home on the range
2. Red Bull Cheever Racing crew member OK after pit road incident
1. Carpentier at home on the range: It's one of the rare off weekends...

1. Carpentier at home on the range: It's one of the rare off weekends during the summer for IRL IndyCar® Series drivers who race seven times in nine weekends in July and August. Some will relax by spending time on the golf course, lake or just hanging out at home.

Not Patrick Carpentier.

The driver of the No. 83 Red Bull Cheever Racing Toyota-powered Dallara spends most of his time in Las Vegas, but these days, he's likely to be found working at his 115-acre ranch in his native Quebec.

"I bought (the ranch) this year," said Carpentier, who ranks 10th in points in his first season in the IndyCar Series after a ninth-place finish at Michigan International Speedway on July 31. "I went there last winter and I saw that it could be a place for me to build a Sno-Cross track.

"During summer, the races are all on the east side so I go up there and play around with my Komatsu equipment. They sponsor me and give me all the bulldozers I need and everything. We're doing a lot of work. We're kind of destroying it to rebuild it. It's fun, I really enjoy it."

The project isn't all fun, however. Carpentier has a long-term business venture in mind.

"I want to change it to a ranch and raise buffaloes or bisons," he said. "Bison meat is very lean and is easy to digest. It's the best meat. I think it's going to be on the rise in the future. I like bison. I like the way they look, and I've seen a couple of ranches with them. We have to establish where we will distribute it and things like that, but it's an interesting project. It's relaxing to me."

Carpentier, who has completed the most laps of any IndyCar Series driver this season, can relax for a few more days. On Aug. 13, he'll swap out his overalls for his firesuit as practice and qualifying take place at Kentucky Speedway for the AMBER Alert Portal Indy 300.

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2. Red Bull Cheever Racing crew member OK after pit road incident: Red Bull Cheever Racing crew member Josh Junge is resting at home after being injured in a pit road incident during the Firestone Indy 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Junge, the outside rear tire changer for the No. 83 Red Bull Cheever Racing Toyota-powered Dallara of Patrick Carpentier, was struck by a tire which had fallen off the car of Ryan Briscoe.

"All I remember is something hit me, and I heard a really loud noise," said Junge, who was checked and released from Foote Hospital in Jackson, Mich., before returning to Indianapolis on July 31. "I was thinking,'When is the rest of the car going to hit me.' I am OK, but very sore. I feel like I got ran over by a train."

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The 10th season of IndyCar Series competition continues with the Amber Alert Portal Indy 300 Presented by GPS Industries on Aug. 14 at Kentucky Speedway. The race will be broadcast by ABC and the IMS Radio Network. The race broadcast will also be carried on XM Satellite Radio channel 152 (XM Extreme). The next Menards Infiniti Pro Series race is the Courier-Journal 100 on Aug. 13 at Kentucky Speedway. The race will be telecast on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. (EDT) on Aug. 18.